On Fasting

When we think about spiritual disciplines, we think of things like praying, reading scripture, meditation, etc. How often do we think about fasting? I mean, giving up food? It's like, necessary or something.

Like when I watch TV, there's this subconscious desire to snack or just munch on stuff. Chips, candy, frozen foods, and sometimes fruit.

Or what about gum? I know plenty of people who just HAVE to have gum or they feel like they're going to die.

Are we doing these things because we're hungry or out of habit? When I see a commercial for pizza or chips, how often do I start digging through my fridge or pantry looking for something to eat?

There was this one time, my friend Brian had just come back from a cruise. If you've ever been on a cruise, it's all about eating. Your entire schedule revolves around meals. There’s breakfast, lunch, dinner. Then there's the buffets. Afternoon buffet, midnight buffet, brunch buffet, and people line up for these things. There's even cruises that have 24 hour pizza kitchens in addition to the ships set of 4 and 5 star restaurants.

So, Brian comes back from this cruise to the Bahamas. We're getting ready to have some barbeque and he loads up his plate with ribs and sausage. And I comment, "That's a lot of food." You know what he says? "I'm not even hungry." We're talking like 5 ribs and 3 sausages while I had 2 ribs and maybe 1 sausage. And he finishes it! All because it was time to eat.

So where does fasting fit into all of this?

One of the reasons we fast is to discipline our body. Paul said, "But I discipline my body and keep it under control." (1 Cor 9:27, ESV) By not giving into that psychological need to feed, that urge, that desire, we keep our body under control. In the first few hours of fasting, it's so easy to forget that you're not supposed to eat.

This one time, I gave up beef and video games for lent. The first day, I was in the dining hall for lunch. Without even thinking about it, I had fixed myself a burger. It wasn't until I took my first bite that I realized that I had given up beef for 40 days.

Eating has become habit for us because we have so much food available. Fasting helps to break that habit so that YOU control what and when you eat, not your body.


In Psalms it says,

"But I, when they were sick--
I wore sackcloth;
I afflicted myself with fasting;
I prayed with head bowed on my chest." (Ps 35:13, ESV)

"I afflicted myself". The psalmist is in pain from not eating. And when you fast, you get really hungry really fast.

It's not just our bodies that control us, but other aspects of our lives. All the hurt, fear, shame, guilt, and secret desires we hide in our hearts. When we fast, those things start to reveal themselves. The psalmist says,

"When I wept and humbled my soul with fasting,
it became my reproach." (Ps 69:10)

It is through fasting that we are able to see all the subconscious things that control us. And because we are controlled by these things, rather than God, we’re ashamed of them. The key is to not to let ourselves get bogged down in the self-pity or self-criticism. Rather, turn those things over to God now that we’ve recognized them.

I grew up with Asian parents and I didn't always want to eat what my mom prepared. I'd eat some and then I'd say I was full. Or when I’d go out to eat and get this massive plate of food, I’m full, but my parents would tell me to finish. "There's starving kids in Africa." They'd quip. But how is finishing my plate going to help starving children in Africa? That never made sense to me.

You see, we're conditioned to eat. Most of the times we have hunger pangs, it's not because we're hungry, but because we're dehydrated. Our natural inclination is to grab something to eat. But what we really need is a glass of water.

Fasting reminds us that we are sustained by God.

When Jesus was tempted by Satan, at the end of the 40 days,

"he answered, "It is written,

"'Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (Mt 4:4)

It's God who provides us with life and breath. Just as he breathed life into Adam at creation, he continues to sustain us. Of course, if we don't eat ever, we'll starve, but we can go for a surprisingly long time without physical sustenance.

The important question is, why do we fast. All these things are good reasons. Discipline the body, reveal the things that control us, and remind us that we aren't sustained by food alone. But all these have to be done in the context of centering on God.

"And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." (Mt 6:16-18)

The hypocrites would "disfigure their faces", purposely making themselves look emaciated and under nourished to not only receive the sympathy of others, but their praise and admiration as well. Especially now a days, fasting happens so infrequently that it's almost revered. Or somehow they're more special or more spiritual or more holy because they're fasting. But Jesus tells us to "anoint [our] head and was [our] face, [so] that [our] fasting may not be seen by others but by [our] Father".

Fasting is about humbling ourselves before God. We're not going to make God do anything because of our fast. He's not going to love us anymore, nor will he be more inclined to answer our prayers. That's not the point of fasting. The point is centering ourselves on God.

As we humble ourselves before God, we see our utter dependence on Him. It's not about what we want. Nor about what God can do for us. It's recognizing our place in relation to God.